Shinra Tensei
by WanderingAround
Summary: I'm still here for you. . .Even if you always keep pushing me away. Spoilers manga chapters 422-437.


**Shinra Tensei**

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Concentrating on the amount of chakra required, God realm uttered in a dead voice "Shinra Tensei". Not a flicker of emotion crossed his face when the Konoha nins were struck dumbfounded by the sheer power of his abilities. Over and over again, they relentlessly threw their supplies of kunai, shuriken and various types of ninjutsu at him. Each time, they were repelled by the same technique that allowed nothing to come into close contact.

"Raikiri!" Kakashi Hatake, the famed copy nin had shouted, charging at him earlier on in the battle. This technique was reputed to be his only original jutsu and by far one of the most powerful, second only to his mangekyo sharingan. The sound of the heavy chirping of birds soon filled the air. Crackling from the center of his palm and extending around his body, a pulsing halo of electricity.

Lightning reincarnated; sent to protect him and in turn being a considerable liability in Pain's goals. With a single thrust of his arm, Kakashi sealed his fate.

"Fools", Pain thought with scorn. "Thinking they can defeat me with weak techniques. I, a descendant of the sage of the six paths, the creator of the world's first ninja techniques. Now look what has befallen them. Through and because of their arrogance, Konoha is now nothing more but a pile of rubble. Countless of them are already dead, their strongest jounin bent by my will and their hokage reduced to nothing more but a coward hiding behind a rock.

Now, he watched as the jinchuuriki of the nine-tailed fox appeared. "He seemed to have completed his training as a sage", he mused. Pain played witness to the disbelief and sorrow in Naruto's cerulean eyes when he realized all this was because of _him_, of the power inside him. That was what these Akatsuki bastards are looking for. "And as the future rokudaime, I will never let that happen", Naruto thought with vicious loathing and determination. His eyes slowly faded from a clear blue to a sinister, red color. His pupils were now slit to those resembling a kitsune. Unveiled anger and an unfathomable bloodlust was now in the air. "Even if he is the container of the nine-tails, his chances of defeating me are approximately zero", Pain thought with contempt.

He watched with silent calculation as Naruto slowly broke down his defenses, one by one. He watched as he destroyed Asura path with a single punch, obliterating it to a hundred pieces while protecting Tsunade. He looked on as Naruto created two kage bunshins to assist him in creating that S-class kinjutsu, the rasenshuriken. Amazed that he somehow succeeded in throwing that level of technique at Animal path, who just narrowly escaped with the help of his summoned beasts. Watching as Naruto summoned one of the many Myobokuzan toads and trapped Animal path and Asura path inside it's inescapable mouth.

Not a single emotion betrayed Pain's stoic face as his defenses were slowly broken down, by this mere _child_. Performing a quick rasenrengan, Naruto quickly defeated Animal path, his body sliding down from the toad's mouth unto the earth below. He saw how he concentrated enormous amounts of sage chakra unto the center of his being to escape the vice-like grip of Asura path, turning him into a petrified statue. Pain acknowledged his strength, the endless amounts of power he wielded.

"You are very strong. This is the first time anybody has ever given Pain this much trouble. But. . .My pain is still stronger than yours". He can never fathom the true powers of the Rinnegan, the sort of pain and suffering he had to go through. . .No, he would never understand. And because of his ignorance, it is now the reason why he is speared all throughout his body by Pain's chakra blades, at his feet and at his mercy. "Why are you doing this?!" Naruto had shouted at him. As if it was not already obvious.

"By creating short periods of peace in this never-ending cycle of pain caused by the very system we ninjas created, I will rule a world where peace and justice will prevail. After I have accomplished my goal of controlling all the tailed beasts, people will learn pain and in turn they will learn true peace. Then as Pain was preparing to take him back to headquarters, he sensed a chakra signature swiftly approaching their direction.

He soon discovered that it belonged to a girl with long indigo hair and pearl eyes, flashing with a sense of strength and determination. "Reinforcements, eh?"

Pain recognized the girl as a member of the elite Hyuuga clan, one of the strongest clans in the village. A formidable opponent, but she was of course no where near the level of his own abilities. He listened when Naruto screamed for her to get out of here, saying she was no match for him. She replied in a carefully controlled voice, "I know. I'm just. . . being selfish". The Hyuuga girl then said how his smile saved her and because of that, she would willingly die protecting him. "Because I. . .love you." With this revelation having given her more than enough courage, she didn't pause at Naruto's speechlessness and then charged straight at Pain.

"Juho Soshiken!", she forcefully said, her arms now encircled by fierce lions made out of her chakra. He quickly sidestepped her; left, right and back again, her strikes just missing him for a fraction of an inch. Pausing, Pain then extended an arm. "Shinra Tensei". Hinata shrieked in pain as she was thrown into a pile of large boulders. Appearing suddenly at her side, he took a moment of savoring the fright in her eyes, before driving his chakra blade into the center of her chest, piercing her heart. Flecks of scarlet blood dripped from his blade. "This is just like how my parents were killed by Konoha ninjas, right in front of my eyes."

Pity this girl had only minutes to live right after confessing her true feelings. But the world has no use for things like these, useless proclamations of love as if the power of words alone can save them from the suffering and pain of war. Why do these people pretend that they can be strong, when at the end of the day it seems like it was all for nothing. Beliefs like a loved one's arms can shield you from harm, were beliefs accepted by the foolish and the weak. Love and pain, pain and love, they had no similarities, only an endless array of cruel similarities. He had known for a long time now that love was just a term to disguise a person's true intentions.

Where were the so called "love", "justice" and "peace" were there when the enemy ninjas raped his mother before killing both his parents right before his eyes during one of the countless Amegakure wars? Was there some sort of a sick satisfaction of fulfilled justice when they watched the life fade away from his parent's eyes as they were killed and casually disposed of as if they were mere spoils of war? "No. . .No. . .This world. . .will thank me when they experience the pain I have gone through."

Flashback: During the end of one of Amegakure's bloody wars.

Raindrops were pounding against the ground, never ceasing to stop. They mixed with the fresh droplets of blood, like the gods themselves were crying and trying to find a respite, a quiet sanctuary, from these never-ending feuds. A young boy with shoulder length black hair was standing between two freshly dug graves. The graves seemed to have been made clumsily, but there was almost a loving way in which they had been laid out. They spanned each other no more than a few inches, almost as if nothing, not even death could keep them apart. Scraggly bunches of wildflower were each placed at the foot of their headstones, bearing the simple inscription "Father" and "Mother" carved out by the sharp edge of a rock.

A few traitor tears escaped from the boy's eyes, running a fresh trail down his cheeks to the ground below. He hurriedly unclenched his bruised fist to wipe them away. He observed the wetness on his fingers, trembling too much to escape his notice. "They didn't have to die. . .None of them did." Choking back silent sobs, he remembered those nights when his parent's thought he was asleep. His parents talked in urgent whispers in the dead of the night of how the each had to do their "duty" to their country. On how things had to be sacrificed. . .On how much _pain_ they were willing to endure to ensure this goal of theirs could be fulfilled. Nothing but lies. . .Pointless lies. Lives were taken everyday, so why did his parent's deaths matter?

He raised his eyes up to the heavens, asking, pleading "Is pain really that inevitable?" Unbeknownst to him, a girl no more than twelve years old was watching him, hiding behind a large tree. The girl watched with silent fascination at the boy's pained expression , almost as if by staring she could somehow try to ease his pain. Anxiously twisting a lock of her indigo hair with a large white origami flower placed at the side, she decided to approach him, for he seemed harmless enough. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked in a timid voice. The boy didn't respond. Gently grabbing a piece of his sleeve, she tried again. "Hello, I said are you alri—"

"Don't touch me."

Quickly letting go, she stared at him with shock and hurt evident in her eyes. Then looking down, her confusion turned to understanding. "Oh, you've lost your parents. Your just like me", she said in a quiet voice. The boy remained motionless. She continued, "You don't have to hide it you know. My parents once told me that its okay to cry when you've lost someone you love."

Silence.

"Do. . .do you think it will ever end?" the boy asked.

"Will what end?"

"You know. . .war, death. . .pain."

"I really don't know. . .My parents never said. Maybe if we pray hard enough to the gods, it will eventually end."

"Maybe."

"Do you have anywhere else to go?"

"No, I don't. The enemy ninjas burned down our house and the places surrounding it. I was the only one who escaped, the others didn't have a chance."

"Hey, its okay. I met another boy who also lost his home. His name is Yahiko and he's very nice to me. Would it be okay if you came with us? We could both use another friend."

"_Friend_. . .? I guess. . I mean. . .okay."

"Alright." Flashing him a bright smile, she extended her hand. "My name is Konan by the way. What's yours?"

Looking at her, at this stranger that offered him her companionship, she was almost like an. . .an. . . angel. Raising his eyes uncertainly to meet her own, he discovered a genuine sense of kindness and concern for him. Taking her hand, he said "My name is. . .Nagato." He didn't miss the alien feelings that stirred deep inside his very being when their hands touched.

------------------------------------------------ Present -----------------------------------------------

Shinra Tensei. . .

_Shinra Tensei. . ._

Shinra Tensei. . .

The ancient book had described it as an extremely advanced S-class kinjutsu that manipulated the very forces of gravity. It repelled any attack, regardless of its magnitude. It was said that using it took an enormous amount of strain and chakra, so an ordinary ninja would have died a long time ago if they used it in frequent or consecutive intervals. Only the holder of one of the greatest of the three legenary doujutsu, the Sharingan and the Byakugan, paled in comparison to the powers of the Rinnegan.

"Was it a gift then or a curse, to have inherited my kekkai genkai? I. . .can no longer tell the difference. I have always had the strongest of ninja bend at my feet, crying out for mercy. With these two simple words, I can let nothing get through my defenses. _Nothing_."

. . .Even_ love_?. . .

A flash of pale skin. Indigo hair swaying with the breeze. And those eyes. . .Eyes that spoke of comfort. . .and _love_ amidst the pain.

Konan. . .

"I. . .keep pushing you away. Even after all you've done for me. . . and for Yahiko. I keep pretending I don't see the hurt I've caused you. . .I'm sorry."

He trembled slightly.

"When I've achieved my goal, I can bring into reality our world of peace. Isn't that what you've always wanted?"

He closed his eyes.

"Bear with me. . .I beg you. Please have the strength to continue looking into my eyes, even after all I've done. All the lives I've destroyed."

He let all those unwhispered feelings he had kept hidden for so long break free.

"I still love you, Konan."

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A/N: Owari. Thanks a lot for reading. Sorry I haven't updated any new stories for such a long time. School was murder. At last summer's already here. . .XD


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